The Antibacterial Activity of Rhazya stricta Extracts against Klebsiella pneumoniae Isolated from Some Soil Invertebrates at High Altitudes

Mohamed M Hassan; Bander Albogami; Tarombera Mwabvu; Mohamed F Awad; Roqayah H Kadi; Alaa A Mohamed; Jamal A Al-Orabi; Montaser M Hassan; Mohsen Mohamed Elsharkawy

doi:10.3390/molecules28083613

The Antibacterial Activity of Rhazya stricta Extracts against Klebsiella pneumoniae Isolated from Some Soil Invertebrates at High Altitudes

Molecules. 2023 Apr 21;28(8):3613. doi: 10.3390/molecules28083613.

Authors

Mohamed M Hassan^{1

2}, Bander Albogami^{1

2}, Tarombera Mwabvu³, Mohamed F Awad^{1

2}, Roqayah H Kadi⁴, Alaa A Mohamed^{1

2}, Jamal A Al-Orabi^{1

2}, Montaser M Hassan^{1

2}, Mohsen Mohamed Elsharkawy⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biology, College of Science, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia.
² High Altitude Research Centre, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia.
³ School of Biology & Environmental Sciences, University of Mpumalanga, Private Bag X 11283, Mbombela 1200, South Africa.
⁴ Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Jeddah, Jeddah 21959, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Department of Agricultural Botany, Faculty of Agriculture, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafr Elsheikh 33516, Egypt.

Abstract

Klebsiella is a common dangerous pathogen for humans and animals and is widely present in the digestive system. The genus Klebsiella is ubiquitous, as it is endemic to surface water, soil, and sewage. In this study, 70 samples were obtained from soil-dwelling invertebrates from September 2021 to March 2022 from Taif and Shafa in different altitudinal regions of Saudi Arabia. Fifteen of these samples were identified as Klebsiella spp. The Klebsiella isolates were genetically identified as Klebsiella pneumoniae using rDNA sequencing. The antimicrobial susceptibility of the Klebsiella isolates was determined. Amplification of virulence genes was performed using PCR. In this study, 16S rDNA sequencing showed a similarity from 98% to 100% with related K. pneumonia from the NCBI database, and the sequences were deposited in the NCBI GenBank under accession numbers ON077036 to ON077050. The growth inhibition properties of ethanolic and methanolic extracts of the medicinal plant Rhazya stricta's leaves against K. pneumoniae strains using the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method and disc diffusion were evaluated. In addition, the biofilm inhibitory potential of these extracts was investigated using crystal violet. HPLC analysis identified 19 components divided into 6 flavonoids, 11 phenolic acids, stilbene (resveratrol), and quinol, and revealed variations in the number of components and their quantities between extracts. Both extracts demonstrated interesting antibacterial properties against K. pneumoniae isolates. The 2 extracts also showed strong biofilm inhibitory activities, with percentages of inhibition extending from 81.5% to 98.7% and from 35.1% to 85.8% for the ethanolic and methanolic extracts, respectively. Rhazya stricta leaf extract revealed powerful antibacterial and antibiofilm activities against K. pneumoniae isolates and could be a good candidate for the treatment or prevention of K. pneumonia-related infections.

Keywords: Klebsiella pneumoniae; Rhazya stricta; Saudi Arabia; biodiversity; biofilm; soil invertebrates.

MeSH terms

Altitude
Anti-Bacterial Agents / chemistry
Apocynaceae*
DNA, Ribosomal
Humans
Klebsiella
Klebsiella pneumoniae*
Microbial Sensitivity Tests
Plant Extracts / chemistry

Substances

Plant Extracts
Anti-Bacterial Agents
DNA, Ribosomal

Grants and funding

1-442-43/This research was funded by Dean of Scientific Research through the High-Altitude Research Centre at Taif University, Taif, Saudi Arabia, under project number 1-442-43